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Flow of electric charge that reverses periodically, unlike direct current. It starts from zero, grows to a
maximum, decreases to zero, reverses, reaches a maximum in the opposite direction, returns again to
zero, and repeats the cycle indefinitely. The time taken to complete one cycle is called the period (`
periodic motion), and the number of cycles per second is the frequency; the maximum value in either
direction is the current's amplitude. Low frequencies (50±60 cycles per second) are used for domestic
and commercial power, but frequencies of around 100 million cycles per second (100 megahertz) are
used in television and of several thousand megahertz in radar and microwave communication. A major
advantage of alternating current is that the voltage can be increased and decreased by a transformer for
more efficient transmission over long distances. Direct current cannot use transformers to change
voltage.
` electric current.

For more information on alternating current (AC), visit Britannica.com. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Copyright © 1994-2008
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

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Alternating Current (AC) is an electric current that reverses direction cyclically ± unlike
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(DC), which always travels the same way, as is the case with anything
powered by a battery, for example. AC is the current running through the electric wires
and appliances in your home. The magnitude of AC current varies, growing from zero to
a positive maximum and then reducing back to zero before the reversal of the current
causes the current to gradually reach a negative maximum and then return to zero once
again. The number of times an alternating current repeats a full cycle per second is the

  and the maximum the current reaches in either direction is its  

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The waveform of an alternating current power circuit is a sine wave.

Placing various components in a circuit powered by an AC source can affect the sine
waves for the current and the voltage across the circuit that triggers the current flow, as
demonstrated in this tutorial. Illustrated below is a simple circuit with an alternating
current power supply. An ideal 
, Capacitor or Inductor can be placed in the
circuit by making the appropriate selection from the 
pull-down
menu. The voltage (measured in volts) and current (measured in amps) in the circuit
fluctuate due to the alternating current, as seen in the readings on the meters in the
circuit.
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An alternating current generator, or AC generator, produces an alternating current, which means the
voltage produced alternately reverses from positive to negative polarity, producing a corresponding
change in the direction of current flow.

Much like a DC generator, an AC generator requires a coil to cut across the force lines of a magnetic
field. This coil is attached to two slip rings, which deliver the current to and from the load destination,
thus completing the circuit. Alternating current generators are often called alternators.

During the first half turn, the coil cuts across the field near the magnet's north pole. Electrons travel
up the wire, and the lower slip ring becomes positively charged. When the coil cuts near the South
Pole of the wire during the second half turn, the lower slip ring becomes negatively charged, and
electrons move down the wire. The faster the coil turns, the faster the electrons move, increasing the
frequency (in Hertz) of the current produced by the generator.

Alternating Current (ac) is the type of electricity that we get from plugs in the wall. In an alternating
current all of the electric charges switch their direction of flow back and forth.

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Instantaneous voltage is the voltage between two points at a particular moment in time, the
voltage at a specific instant in time. Consider a 115 volt 60 cycle-per-second (cps) AC sine wave like the
one at a wall outlet where you might plug in a household toaster. Starting at zero, the voltage increases
up to some maximum value, then decreases back to zero. What follows is a negative excursion. It's just
like the positive one, only the polarity is reversed. During the second half of the cycle, the voltage goes
below zero, down to some maximum NEGATIVE value, then back up to zero. One complete cycle sees
the voltage go up, reach some maximum, drop back down, cross zero and go on down reaching some
maximum negative value and then come back up to zero. Got it? A 60 cps sine wave makes one
complete cycle in 1/60th of a second. Okay? Now check this out. At half of the 1/60th of a second, or
1/120th of a second, the voltage has gone up, reached its peak, and then come back down to zero. It's
exactly at the middle of its cycle. The instantaneous voltage at that point in time is zero volts. The
instantaneous voltage of a 60 cps sine wave at half a cycle (at time = 1/120th of a second) is zero volts.
When does the voltage reach its positive peak? At 1/4th the time of one cycle, or at 1/240th of a
second. A 115 volt AC sine wave has a maximum peak voltage of about 163 volts. Yes, that's correct.
(The explanation is a separate question.) The voltage starts at zero and then goes up to 163 volts over a
period of 1/240th of a second, then comes back down to zero again over the next 1/240th of a second.
The instantaneous voltage of a 115 volt 60 cps AC sine wave at 1/240th of a second is 163 volts. Hope
that you can read through the explanation to see the idea.

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